Button-attaching machine



(No Modelf) v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

'- G. E. BENTON.

I I I 3 i I amnwboz flZzzflLas-E 175722072 mow/21,

THE NATIONAL ufl-wenunme ccuPANY.

WASHINGTON. 9.1:.

(No Model.)

2 sheets-shet 2. C. E. BENTON.

BUTTON ATTAGHING MACHINE.

Patented Apr. 10, 1894.

WWW

UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. DENTON, or PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

BUTTON-ATTACHING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent N0. 518,182, dated April 10, 1894:.

Application filed July 21, 1892. Serial No. 440,815. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

3e it known that I, CHARLES E. DENTON, a cltlzen of the United States of America, resid- Ing at Peoria, in the county of Peoria and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Button-Attaching Machines, of which the following is 'a siveness and efficiency of operation.

The object of theinvention is, first, to pro- .vide a new and improved feed-supply for the buttons, whereby they will be properly fed and positioned; second, to insure the accuracy of the working parts; and third, in general to cheapen the cost of construction and simplify the operation. I

The invention consists of a tube or race-way for the buttons, and a spring presser disk or wheel projecting therein having a series of recesses or indentations in its periphery corresponding to the shape of the button heads, whereby as one button is operated upon, a second button will be properly positioned.

The invention further consists -of a wire feeding arm automatically operated and held retracted by a pivoted arm, which latter is itself automatically operated whenever the supply of buttons is exhausted, or a button fails tobe in proper position.

The invention also comprises the detail construction, combination and arrangement of parts, substantially as hereinafter fully set forth and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanyingdrawings :Figure l is a side elevation of my improved button attaching machine. Fig. 2 is a front view thereof, the feed tube or race-way being removed. Fig. 3 shows the arm or lever for holding the feeding arm, Figs. 4 and 5 are details.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the frame which is made to occupy a rearwardly inclined position and is rigidly held to its stand or support, (not shown) by screws passed through its base a. In thefront wall a of this frame is formed a transverse slot 0. which extends into an enlarged opening a To this front wall a is secured the clincherdie B,the same being held byscrews b. This clincher die is provided with opposite springarms, by forming a slit 1) in said die; and at its upper end is agroove b in which fits a removable block 5, which in addition to the tension of the spring arms is held bya set screw I) passed through coincident holes in said block and arms. This blockis curved on its upper end so as to effect the clinching of the staple. Thus when this block of the clinching die becomes worn it can be readily removed and a new one substituted.

0 is the cutting and bending bar or plate, D the clincher bar or block, and d the mandrel, all of which features are for the most part similar to those described in my above mentioned applications for patent. The mandrel d in the present invention rests upon an inclined base at and moves beneath an overto be engaged by two shoulders e, e of a camwheel E, whose shaft e is supported by the sides of frame A. In this way the mandrel is movedin both directions. To an arm e of this cam-wheel is pivotally connected the upper end of a rod R, leading from afoot-power treadle (not shown). A third shoulder a of cam-wheel E is designed to engage a flange e of the clincher bar or block D. The upper and lower movement of the arm 6 is limited by plates f adj ustably attached to the backs of frame A by set screws f or other suitable means. On the projecting end of shaft 6 is a crank-arm f to which is pivotally connected the lower end of a pitman f, the upper end thereof being attached to the reduced end of the plate f secured by screws or rivets f to the cutting and bending bar or plate 0.

F is the button tube or race-way composed of a lower stationary part f and an upper removable part f. The stationary part at its lower end has side flange plates 1" through which screws are passed for attaching it to frame A, and to it is attached one end of a fiat spring f the lower end of which is forked and the ends of the latter support the shaft f" of the feed-wheel G. This wheel has a series of grooves or recesses g in its periphery which correspond to the shape of the button heads, and it is designed to project into a slot 9 in the outer portion of the part f. In both parts of the tube or race-way is a continuous longitudinal slot g through which the shanks of the buttons protrude, the slot of the stationary part being coincident with the slot in the clincher bar or block and mandrel. A sleeve or collar 9 is connected to the upper end of the stationary part and designed to receive the lower end of the removable part f". To this latter part is secured one end of a spring arm h, the lower shouldered end h of which is norm ally projected through side opening in the lower end of the removable part and designed to engage and hold the lowermost button therein and thus keep the column of buttons in place until the removable part is attached to the stationary part. When so attached the shouldered end of the spring arrnis forced outward and made to bind against collar 9 and thus hold the removable part rigidly in position.

H is the wire feeding arm constructed and operated on the SBJJIGPIlHClPIG as that shown and described in my last filed application for patent. It is pivoted at its upper end, at 71 to a projection of frame A, and in a slot in its lower end has a lower stationary dog 72: and an upper dog It pivoted by a pin h a-nd against the inner face of this dog bears the lower end of a plate-spring 71, attached to arm h. An adjustable screw h projecting from the side of frame A limits the movement of this wire-feeding arm. The latter is normally held in contact with said screw by a coilspring I which at one end bears against said arm, its other end being attached by a screw '11 to the side of the frame. To arm H near its upper end is secured a plate or projection *1) with which the plate f is designed to engage and thus effect the outward movement of arm H as against the action of its spring. When retracted the upper dog of arm II will loosely slide over the wire and bite thereon when it reaches the outer limit of its movement. A stationary wire holder 11 is attached horizontally to the side of frame A. It consists of a plate 6 having an opening therein, a stationary dog 2' and the pivoted dog 2' the wire being fed between the meeting ends of said dogs. This stationary wire holder prevents the wire from being retracted by the movement of the arm H. v

J is an arm or lever fulcrumed on a screw or shouldered stud j projecting from the front of frame A. The outer end of this arm is broadened and thickened and hence weighted, while its inner end j is bent and designed to extend through a slot or opening 7' in the side of the lower stationary part of tube or raceway F, and bear against the side of the lowermost button. As the latter is operated upon in the formation of a staple, the weighted arm is depressed at its inner end and the outer end is held elevated so as to be above the line of the projecting fulcrum pin it of arm H, but if for any reason a second button should fail to come to place then the inner end of said lever will extend farther into the tube, and the outer end fall down into the path of said pin 0 and prevent the feed arm from moving forward. Hence it will be seen that if an ill-shaped button be lodged in the tube, or the-supply of buttons becomes exhausted, no wire will be fed forward, the feeding arm being held locked. No matter how many times the machine may be operated no wire will be fed or cut, and the operator is thus apprised that the button supply is exhausted, or a button has become lodged.

The operation of cutting and bending and clinching the wire is substantially the same as that described in my above noted applications for patent and need not here be iterated. The removable part of the button tube or race'way is filled withbuttons before being attached to the stationary part, and when the holding spring arm is released the buttons will fall down into the said stationary part, the lowermost button fitting into one of the grooves of the feed-wheel. As the machine is operated to effect the formation of astaple and the button is pushed down, the clinching die receives the shankof said buttonfroni the feed-wheel and carries it to exact position, the said feed-wheel being forced to revolve and receive the next button in the race-Way, thus making a complete and perfect forcefeed for the buttons. At the same time the weighted end of the arm or lever is held elevated out of the way of the wire-feeding arm until the buttons cease to feed, when it will be automatically lowered and hold the said wire feeding arm as against forward movement until another button is ready to receive the wire.

I claim as my invention-- 1. In a button attaching machine of the class herein-described, a feed tube or raceway, having a slot in its front face at its lower end, a wheel pivoted at right angles to said slot into which it projects having a series of recesses in its periphery designed to successively receive the buttons from said tube or race-way and properly position the same, and a spring support for said wheel, as set forth.

2. In a button attaching machine of the class herein-described, a feed tube having a front longitudinal slot in its lower end, a spring plate attached to said tube having a lower forked end, and a wheel pivotally hung in said forked end and at right angles to said slot into which it is projected, and having a series of recesses in its periphery, substantially as set forth.

3. In a button attaching machine of the class herein-described, the combination witli the clincher bar or block having a slot there-- in, and means for feeding and guiding the wire, of the feed tube or race-way having an inner slot for the button shanks and a slot in its front face at its lower end, and the vertically disposed wheel projecting into said latter slot and having a yielding support and a series of recesses in its periphery to receive the heads of the buttons, the shanks of which are positioned for receiving the wire by means of the slot in said clincher bar or block, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with the frame, the cutting and bending bar or plate and the clincher bar or block, of the mandrel at approximately right angles to said cutting and bending bar or plate provided with a lip or shoulder, the cam wheel journaled in said frame having two shoulders for engaging said lip or shoulder, and the operating rod connected to an arm of said cam-wheel, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination with the frame, the cutting and bending bar or plate, and the clincher bar or block having an inner flange c of the mandrel having a lip or shoulder, the camwheel journaled in said frame having two shoulders for engaging said lip or shoulder,

and also having a third shoulder e for engaging said flange 6 substantially as set forth.

6. In a button attaching machine having mechanism for cutting and bending the wire and a feed-tube for the buttons, a wire feeding arm, and means for automatically holding said wire-feeding arm stationary when the button supply ceases, as set forth.

7. In a button attaching machine, having mechanism for cutting and bending the wire and a feed tube for the buttons, a wire feeding arm, and an arm or lever having one end projected into said feed-tube and held depressed by the buttons therein, the outer end of said arm or lever being designed to fall into the path of and hold said wire feeding,

plate, and the clincher bar or block, of a but- 5 5 ton feed tube or race-way having a slot in one side, a wire-feeding arm, and the armor lever having one end projected through said slot, its other end being designed to engage and hold said wire feeding arm retracted when the button supply ceases, substantially as set forth.

' In testimony whereof I affix my signatn re in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES E. DENTON.

Witn esses:

= MARTIN TRINKAUS,

A. L. BENDER. 

